UW holds panel discussion on women in politics

WATERLOO - A University of Waterloo public event this week will explore the challenges and opportunities facing women politicians in Canada.

Students and women at various levels of government will participate in the panel discussion on women in politics. It takes place Friday, March 28 from 2 to 4 p.m. in the great hall of the student life centre on the UW campus. A reception will follow the event.

Panellists will be Albina Guarnieri, MP for Mississauga-East Cooksville and a former veteran affairs minister; Leeanna Pendergast, MPP for Kitchener-Conestoga; Waterloo Mayor Brenda Halloran; Catherine Fife, NDP candidate in Kitchener-Waterloo during the provincial election last year; and Fatima Ahmed, a UW peace and conflict studies student and vice-presidential candidate in the recent election of the federation of students. Caitlin Cull, an arts councillor in the federation's student council, will moderate the discussion.

"This diverse panel will address the opportunities and confront the challenges women encounter in political life," says Veronica Fredericks, an English language and literature student who helped organize the panel discussion.

"The panel discussion really helps us build towards the stated vision of the One Waterloo Campaign, respecting our differences and pushing towards equality on campus and in society," adds Rumeesa Khalid, a student in the English rhetoric and professional writing program who also assisted in planning the event.

The women in politics panel has been organized by students involved with the One Waterloo campaign. The event's aim is to support the role of women in politics and encourage all students to be more engaged in the political process.

The One Waterloo campaign, a partnership between the federation of students and UW, envisions a campus in which such differences as ethnicity, sexual orientation, creed, race and gender are not just identified, but also celebrated. Public events are held to share ideas and solve problems of discrimination and intolerance.